Hello Grant County,

Do you have your summer planned yet? We are finding out that a lot of people have made plans to come to Grant County! We are seeing people every day who tell us that they have always wanted to come here and they are so glad they finally did! Tourism numbers are up according to reports from both Kam Wah Chung and the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. Both have already had more visitors than this time last year. And it is very early in our tourist season!

We’ve had visitors come in and say they saw our ad stating the “Best trip through Oregon takes you through Grant County to the John Day Valley” and they decided to travel down Highway 26 and see if it was true. They said they agree!

Last week, a couple from Vermont came in and told me they wanted to see where the “high desert meets the mountains” and they can’t believe how beautiful it is here!

So, be prepared for tourists! They are coming in on bicycles, motorcycles, cars, trucks and RVs!

Did you see the Rat Rods that came through on Friday? Sunday morning there was a stream of various kinds of classic cars coming through. A lot of them stopped here and were parked downtown.

Here at the Chamber, we are all about welcoming visitors and making them want to return. One of our missions is to help promote bicycle/vehicle safety. If you’re riding a bike, please be visible! And drivers, watch out for cyclists on the narrow roads with little or no shoulders. They will be in the travel lanes. We want everyone to be safe!

This month’s business meeting and luncheon will be held Thursday, June 20. The Board meets at 10:30 a.m. at the Chamber office and the luncheon is at the Outpost restaurant at noon. Please plan to attend.

Our guest speakers will be Kim Randleas and Nick Green. They will be sharing exciting plans for making John Day’s downtown more attractive and the results of the John Day 2019 Regional Economic Diversification Summit that was held here June 11.

We hope to see you there!